Transforming pet owner’s challenges into business

Anshul Goenka, Founder Woofbnb

A pet lover himself with lots of relatives and friends who are pet owners too, Anshul turned some of the challenges into a business. With years of voluntary service experience for causes related to pets and animals and his observations and comparisons of international market vs the Indian market while studying his PG degrees motivated him to start Woofbnb.

Based in Pune, India, Anshul is a MBA from Symbiosis Institute of Management Studies, India and also holds a consultant degree from Leeds Beckett University, UK. Entrepreneurship is what comes naturally to Anshul, a trait inherited from his family and hence what drives him is ideas, creativity, passion, people and great products.

Linking his passion for welfare of animals and his marketing lessons from his MBA days Anshul has made his hobby his profession.

Many pet lovers face the same problem – finding reliable pet services, be it finding someone to groom, walk or even sit when you want to travel out of the city, especially in case of working individuals, for whom, it becomes difficult to dedicate time for their pets. The IDEA of Woofbnb came into existence as a one stop destination for all pet needs, delivered to the doorstep of Pet owners.

The team has researched with over 600 pet owners in the city, collected quantitative and qualitative data and felt there was a huge gap in the market and through services provided by Woofbnb the gaps are being addressed today.

Started in 2015, Woofbnb is based out of Pune with services catering to all kind of pet needs that includes Vets online; Walkers; Groomers; Sitters; Products etc. Anshul shares more details about his venture here.

Why do you think it’s a unique business proposition?
Woofbnb’s uniqueness lies in its range of quality services delivered right at your doorstep. It is a one stop solution for all pet owners to find everything that their pets would need. Each of our vertical has a unique service model which ensures quality, affordability and convenience to our clients.

How did you manage to fund the venture?
We are currently bootstrapped. Services delivered to our client’s fuel up our business and daily operations. We received some initial funding through a business house and HNI’S.

Where did you meet your co-founders / associates?
At the beginning while starting Woofbnb, I discussed the concept and idea with my former colleagues, professors and associates, they are the ones who have helped me form the vision for this company.

What’s your philosophy when it comes to doing business?
I believe every business should be undertaken to provide value to the customer with strong support. Keeping it simple and affordable will help you achieve a lot of business.

Tell us about some of the challenges that you face? How did you over-come them?
One of the biggest challenges is maintaining your focus. As an entrepreneur we all wear many hats, but as we start growing our business, it is very important to identify which one of those hats needs to be turned over to others so we can scale the business. It takes courage and a huge amount of discipline to say “no” to opportunities that come up, but because you’re constrained it’s necessary for survival.

Overcoming challenges: I was lucky enough to have some great people around me, people who could identify and communicate those things which hold the business back. Complaining is never a strategy. Everyone is resource constrained therefore we focus on “resourcefulness”

What would you like to achieve in the next 3 years?
We are growing at 20% month on month and with recently launched verticals our projections in terms of acquiring more customers looks good. We aim to promote Woofbnb as a trusted brand, because quality plays an essential role in this domain. We also plan to scale up our operations in other cities (Mumbai, Delhi, and Bangalore) which are much bigger markets. With use of technology we aim to add value to our delivery and the end user as well.